Yom Kippur 2011

Today is Yom Kippur, (the Day of Atonement) the holiest day of the year for a Jew. It is a solemn time that is enforced by a 25 hour complete fast - no food or water. 

Here are two quotes; one from a traditional Jewish point of view and one from a Messianic point of view.

“Yom Kippur is the tenth day of the month of Tishrei. According to Jewish tradition, God inscribes each person's fate for the coming year into a book, the Book of Life, on Rosh Hashanah, and waits until Yom Kippur to "seal" the verdict. During the Days of Awe, a Jew tries to amend his or her behavior and seek forgiveness for wrongs done against God (bein adam leMakom) and against other human beings (bein adam lechavero). The evening and day of Yom Kippur are set aside for public and private petitions and confessions of guilt (Vidui). At the end of Yom Kippur, one considers oneself absolved by God.”

“As one of the most culturally significant Jewish holidays, Yom Kippur is observed by many secular Jews who may not observe other holidays. Many secular Jews attend synagogue on Yom Kippur—for many secular Jews the High Holy Days are the only recurring times of the year in which they attend synagogue,[1]—causing synagogue attendance to soar.” (Wikipedia)

Excerpt from Eitan Shishkoff, a Messianic Jew in Israel:
‘The Lord took initiative to invent the sacrificial system, knowing that we needed Him to reach out to us. Without God providing the sacrifice, we can’t reach Him. His grace, mercy, compassion, forgiveness and lovingkindness are all over this Day of Atonement. It surely is a day to remember how unlikely and how phenomenal is the sacrifice of our Messiah, God’s Son, whose entry into the Holy of Holies on our behalf secures our redemption and transformation forever. Not a stark day, but a gift. 

 As you can tell, I love Yom Kippur. For me it is not a stark day. It is a gift, presented annually to help us remember and to accentuate the glorious love of our Father, who wants none to be lost but all to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1Timothy 2:4). It is a day to slow down, a day to give thanks, a day to dedicate fully

to the Lord, a day to be freshly freed from worry and guilt and a day to renew my love relationship with the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort (2Corinthians 1:3).” (Tents of Mercy Intercessors' Bulletin - October 6, 2011)

Dennis’ comments: “I was attending Bethel College (St. Paul, MN) in 1973 when Israel observed Yom Kippur. The entire country of Israel had shut down, when  Egyptian and Syrian forces took advantage of this diversion by attacking Israel one more time. Israel, and prime minister Golda Meier, were caught somewhat off-guard. But they regrouped and decisively beat back the Arab armies deep into Syria and then Egypt. This development led to tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. As a result, a second ceasefire was imposed on October 25 to end the war. At the conclusion of hostilities, Israeli forces were 25 miles from Damascus and 63 miles from Cairo.

I created a poster to commemorate this time and I will try to include a copy of it in the next few days. But for today, if you know and put your trust in the Messiah (Jesus), then rejoice that you don’t have to consider yourself absolved, but know that you are forgiven, by the blood of the Lamb.